Copper Sets Fresh U.S. Record as Hoarding Meets Shrinking Supply

Copper climbed to a new all-time high in New York, with September Comex delivery touching $6.7045 per pound — roughly $14,781 per tonne — surpassing the previous intraday peak of $6.69 set in mid-May.

The record reflects a squeeze on two fronts: tariff-driven stockpiling has pulled unusually large volumes of metal into U.S. warehouses, while global mine supply continues to tighten. Freeport-McMoRan, the largest U.S.-listed copper producer, is among the most direct beneficiaries of sustained prices at these levels.

Copper is often read as a barometer of global industrial demand, and the combination of electrification, grid buildout, and data center construction has kept consumption resilient even as broader manufacturing indicators have been mixed.